Quicksilver-feeder



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

P. G. DU BOIS.

QUIGKSILVER FEEDER. No. 247,238. Patented Sept. 20,1881.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

.P. 0. DH BOIS. QUIUKSILVER FEEDER. No. 247,238. Patented Sept. 20,1881.

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UNITED STATES [PATENT OFFIcE.

PIERRE G. DU. BOIS, OF SAN FRANCISCO, OALlFORNIA.

QUICKSILVER-FEEDER- SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No.247,238, dated September 20, 1881.

Application filed April 19, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PIERRE C. DU 1301s, of the city and county of SanFrancisco, State of California, have invented a Quicksilver- Feeder; andI hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof.

My invention relates to a device for feeding quicksilver to the mortarsof ore stamp-mills; and it consists in projecting from a cup a statedquantity of quicksilver into the mortars at stated times, said cup beingoperated by appropriate machinery driven from the cam-sh aft of thebattery, whereby itis made to descend into a vat of quicksilver, andthen to ascend filled with the metal, and to cast it forth into apipeconnected with the mortars, the whole operation being done regularly atstated periods, said periods being capable of extension within certainlimits.

In the process of working gold ore with stamp-mills, it is usual tointroduce mercury into the mortars with the ore for the purpose ofamalgamating the gold. This it is customary to do by hand, the operatorat stated periods introducing the mercury with a spoon or other vessel.These periods are, for the sake of convenience, necessarily some timeapartas, for instance, every quarter or half hour.- To make them anyshorter would entail an amount of attention and labor notjustified-under the circumstances. Added to that is the irregularity ofa process which depends upon direct manual intervention. The consequenceis that the quicksilver is either not introduced,

through neglect, or is put in very irregularly.

This is a disadvantage, for in this class of work the presence ofmercury is necessary for the saving of the gold, and if not put in muchgold is lost, or when put in irregularly, either in quantity or time,some of the gold escapes.

The object of my invention is to provide -means by which the quicksilvermay be introduced in stated quantities and at stated times by theoperation of automatic mechanism, and by the use of which theintroduction may be accomplished at much shorter intervals, thus keepingup a practically-continuous supply of mercury, which will thus operatewithin the mortars upon all the ore. Referring, now, to the accompanyingdrawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my de vice. Fig. 2 is alongitudinal section. Fig.3 is a side view with a portion of the tankbroken away. Fig. 4 is a top view.

Let A represent a base having secured to or formed with it a tank orreservoir, B, of appropriate metal to resist the action of thequicksilver, and of capacity suificient to hold a considerable quantityof mercury. It is closed on top, except at its forward end, to allow thecup mechanism to descend within it.

C is a vertical guide-post secured within the tank, and D a slide uponthe post, having pivoted to its rear the pitman E. To its front end isjournaled the bent arm 1?, one end of which has attached to it the cupG, and the other end is bifurcated, fitting and sliding on the curvedguide-plate H, secured within the tank A.

A projecting pin or lug, a, is in the vertical guide-post near its top,and defines the limit of the upward play of the slide D. WVhen thepitman E is depressed the slide D descends, carrying with it the cup G,which, being journaled, as shown, follows the curve of the guideplate H,and when down in the tank the cup will be right side up. When the pitmanis raised the cup will ascend, and, following the curve of the plate H,near its top, will be caused to incline forward and project over theedge of the tank, being then about or nearly half turned. If the slide Dhas a rapid ascent, it will strike forcibly against the lug a andcommunicate a sudden jar to the cup, which will throw out any contentsit may have.

The mechanism to produce that which I have just explained is as follows:

I is a vertical longitudinal support, having at its rear end aperforated bearing, J, in which is journaled the operating crank orlever K, by means ofa shaft, L, extending through said hub and support.The forward end of the lever K is pivoted to the pitman E. The shaft L-has keyed to it a pinion, M, which engages with a vertical rack-bar, N,sliding-Tupfand down in and supported by appropriate guides, 11,attached to the longitudinal support I. The top of the rack-bar N isprovided with a weight, 0, and has attached to it below the weight anarm,P, having a projecting pin or lug, 0. Thus,

if a lifting force be. applied under the pin a, the vertical rack-bar Nwill be raised and will turn the pinion M and depress the lever K,forcing the cup G down in the tank A. Such a force is necessary to causethe cup to descend into the heavy mercury. When the force is taken awaythe weight on the rack-bar N will cause said bar to fall, and thussuddenly raise the cup G. It is obvious that instead of a weight I coulduse a spring to cause the rackbar N to suddenly descend. This liftingforce I obtain as follows:

Q is a vertical standard, in which one end of the perforated shaft orhub B is journaled. The shaft L of the lever K extends through theperforated hub R, and is also journaled in the standard Q. The hub R isthus journaled upon the shaft L, and has a motion independent of it. Thehub R carries the ratchet-wheel S, provided with a number of teeth, andalso carries the cam T between the ratchet wheel S and the pinion M, andoperating under the in 0 so as to im in e thereon in its revolu-- p 7tion. Behind the ratchet-wheel is the retaining-pawl U, as shown. Underthe ratchetwheel S is the sliding bar V, having the operating-pawl W,engaging with the said ratchetwheel.

X is a stop upon the sliding bar V, and Y is the operating-pitmanloosely fitting through the stop X, and secured therein by a head, asshown, and having a stop, Z, screwed to it in front of said stop X. Whenthe pitman Y is pressed forward it pushes forward the sliding bar V, andcauses its operating-pawl W to engage with and turn the ratchet-wheel S,and to revolve the cam T, which, impinging upon the pin a, raises therack-bar N and forces the cup G down into the mercury. When the camreaches a certain point it releases the pin and allows the rack-bar tofall and suddenly elevate the cup with its contents.

This device I will place in any convenient position upon the battery,and will transmit power to its operating-pitman from the camshaft of thebattery, thus connecting it directly with the working of the stamps. Thecupwill discharge its contents into a pipe leading to the mortars, andas I can lead this pipe from any point,I am enabled to place the devicein the most convenient position. 1 can weigh out the required amountofmercury to last through the day, and place it in the tank B and lock itup. It will require no further attention. I can so attach the cup G tothe bent arm 1 as by screwing, that it may be readily removed for thesubstitution of another of different capacity.

V Itis necessary in the operation of the device for the purpose hereinconsidered to regulate the times of discharge of the cup, in order toincrease or decrease the quantity of mercury fed to the mortars. This isdone by means of the movable stop Z, which, by being screwed upon thepitman Y at different distances, regulates the stroke of the sliding barV. By placing it toward the end of the pitman a longer stroke iseffected, and the operating-pawl Wis made to engage with the teeth ofthe ratchetwheel at widerdistances. Thus it maybe made to engage withevery second tooth, or every third or fourth tooth, and increase thevelocity of revolution of the said wheel, and, consequently, to shortenthe intervals between the periods of discharge of the cup, and increasethe feed of the quicksilver. By adjusting the stop Z farther back uponthe pitman the stroke isshortened and the pawl W made to engage withevery tooth of the ratchet-wheel. This adjustability of the stroke isnecessarily bounded by certain limits. To go beyond them I have but tochange the size of the ratchet-wheel and the number of teeth thereon.This change will depend upon the circumstances of the object in view. Imay find that the particular ore being worked requires the introductionof mercury at intervals of five minutes. If my cam-shaft run fortyrevolutions a minute, I can provide my ratchet-wheel with two hundredteeth and adj ust'thc stroke of the sliding bar to cause the pawl toengage every tooth, and thus feed the mercury every five minutes. Byadjusting the stroke to engage every second tooth I can feed the mercuryevery two minutes and a half, and so on; Thus by setting reasonablelimits in each particular case the feed of quicksilver can be adjustedwithin said limits. Once adjusted, the operation is regular andaccomplishes all the objects of the invention.

While I have thus far confined myself to a description of the inventionas applied to feeding quicksilver to the mortars of ore-batteries, it isobvious the principle of a regular intermittent feed, as herein setforth, may be applicable to other uses where the necessities of the caserequire such feed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The improved apparatus for feeding quicksilver or other liquids froma reservoir or tank, consisting of a feeding-cup device arranged upon aslide, substantially as described, and having mechanism, substantiallyas shown, for imparting a reciprocating motion to the slide, for thepurposes set forth.

2. The tank or reservoir B, in combination with the swinging cup orreceptacle G, guided within said tank, and automatically depressed andelevated therein at regular periodic intervals by means of crank-rodmechanism, substantially as herein described.

3. The feeding mechanism consisting of the swinging cup or receptacle G,arranged to slide up and down within the reservoir B, in combinationwiththe actuating mechanism consisting of the pitman E, crank K, pinionM, Weighted vertical rack-bar N, and operatingcam T, constructedsubstantially as and for the purpose herein described.

4. The combination,with the swinging cup or receptacle G,of the slide D,pitman E, crank IIO K, shaft L, pinion M, weighted vertical rackbar N,cam T, and the ratchet-wheel S, having,

tank containing the substance to be fed at intervals by means of anactuating-cam, T, whereby said cup is suddenly elevated and projectedforward by means of the momentum of a weighted bar, N, behind thepivot-pointL, all in 20 combination substantially as herein described,or the equivalent of such means.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

PIERRE G. DU BOIS.

Witnesses:

S. H. N OURSE, FRANK A. BROOKS.

